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Concert Review: Magic Kids & Superhumanoids @ Brighton Music Hall (4/1/11)

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Artists: Cults (didn’t see! :( ), Magic Kids, Superhumanoids
Date: Friday, April 1, 2011
Location: Brighton Music Hall (Brighton, MA)
Comments:
Act I: Superhumanoids– These guys were nice and chill, for lack of better adjectives. But, in many ways that’s precisely how I would describe them. They could definitely rock out at the same time and had some hooks, but I simply appreciated just a nice, relaxing experience. A good segue way into the Magic Kids…

Act II: Magic Kids– The happiest band in the world, it seems. The music of the Magic Kids simply jumps out at you and grabs you and says hey let’s play Twister and have a Pajama Party! Not to get too Calvinist on you, but that’s really how it is. Their music is to the Beach Boys what Hunx and His Punx is to 60s Girl Groups. In other words, they have the whole Brian Wilson pop dynamic down to a tee, and they have added their own flavor to the mix. The Kids’ opened with “Candy,” an incredible number from last year’s Memphis LP. Honestly, the sound was amazing, I couldn’t think of a single flaw, I could hear everything, it sounded better than the record itself. They continued with other Memphis classics like “Summer,” “Skateland,” “Superball,” and perhaps their most well-known song, “Hey Boy,” which was probably my favorite moment of the evening. In particular, the drums were fucking epic, it was impossible not to be impacted in one way or another. They also played a new song called “Awesome,”- an eight minute ditty. All in all, they played a nearly 40 minute set and I can say with no hyperbole, the Magic Kids were one of the best bands I have ever seen. Unfortunately, it seemed like the crowd wasn’t overly enthusiastic for their performance, but these Memphis natives didn’t let that nonsense intefere with their fun. Neither did I, can’t wait to see them in the future, perhaps headlining!

Grade: 8/10

NOT from last Friday’s show!

Art, Concer t Review, concert review, Music, pictures, reviews, Uncategorized, Video

Concert Review: Glassjaw, These People, Tidal Arms @ Paradise (3/25/11)

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Artist: Glassjaw, These People, Tidal Arms
Date: Friday, March 25, 2011
Venue: Paradise Rock Club (Boston, MA)
Comments:
Act I: Tidal Arms- These guys certainly had the musical chops and perhaps could be better appreciated by musicians or those that value technique as a high standard of musical quality. Not to say they were mind blowing musicians, they weren’t, but some of the drummers I attended the show with were definitely impressed with the musicianship displayed by Tidal Arms. For me, they fit too nicely in the typical rock band realm and didn’t do much sonically outside those confines.

Act II: These People- These people were better than the previous people. I felt like I was watching a combo of a less experimental Sonic Youth (especially in the vocals) meets the danceable quality of a Lemonade.  They didn’t totally floor me, but kept my intersted and I certainly enjoyed their performance. They were more on the inventive side than Tidal Arms and for me that is far more appealing than being a virtuso or a techncially sophisticated musician.  Overall, TP’s set was short, but sweet.

Act III: Glassjaw!!!-“You don’t know! You don’t know! You don’t know!” screams singer Darryl Palumbo as they open with the new classic ” You Think You’re John Fucking Lennon.” I think we do know Darryl; we know that Glassjaw is an unflinching powerhouse, a force to be reckon with. The band’s set placed heavy emphasis on their 2002 sophomore effort Worship and Tribute, an album that contains some of the group’s finest and most recognizable songs, This in turn got the crowd all riled up and I must say GJ fans appear to be some of the most energetic out there. Memorable moments included “Ape Dos Mil,” “Convectuoso,” “Tip Your Bartender,” and easily the most exhilerating number all night-“Siberian Kiss,” one of the band’s angriest/heviest tunes- a wise closer on their part. Alas, this was the only song from that LP- a major qualm for me and many others, with it being arguably their most beloved work. Also, while I enjoyed the fact that they played many of their current songs, I thought the choice of performing an encore consisting of an entirely NEW EP (Coloring Book ) was a poor one. And though I appreciated the music, I felt like coming off the intensity and heightened engagement of “Siberian Kiss,” playing solely subdued, reserved, more mellow music was a little too much. With that being said, as a whole GJ and particularly Darryl, with his frentic style and off the wall antics/persona, put on an amazing show of upwards to 105 minutes of pure, sonic insanity.

Set List:

You Think You’re (John Fucking Lennon)
Tip Your Bartender
Mu Empire
Stars
Ape Dos Mil
The Gillette Cavalcade Of Sports
Pink Roses
Jesus Glue
Natural Born Farmer
All Good Junkies Go To Heaven
El Mark
Convectuoso
Two Tabs Of Mescaline
Siberian Kiss

Encore:
Black Nurse
Gold
Vanilla Poltergeist Snake
Miracles In Inches
Stations Of The New Cross
Daytona White

Grade: 8/10

Excuse me for the extremely late arrival of this review! You guys deseve better… I’ve been very busy with school, work and the whoel shabang, but better late than never fuckers!